Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

The new owner of the former Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island building at 15 La Salle Square, across Sabin Street from the Dunkin' Donuts Center in downtown Providence, is making sure the structure stays in good shape.

Berkeley Investments of Boston, which purchased 15 La Salle Square last April, has been performing repair and maintenance work on the building, which is available for lease once Blue Cross & Blue Shield moves out. Blue Cross & Blue Shield, which has about 1,000 employees in Rhode Island, is building a new headquarters next to the Waterplace apartments in Providence's Capital Center, at the corner of Finance Way and Exchange Place. The Blue Cross lease at 15 La Salle Square expires April 1, 2010.

John Karoff, senior vice-president of Berkeley Management, a subsidiary of Berkeley Investments, said moisture had seeped beneath the building's walkways, and work crews have been replacing the waterproof membrane that runs underneath them. He said some of the granite panels on the ground level of the building were also affected.
Higher up on the six-story building, Karoff said, workers are replacing the caulking in between the granite paneling, which Karoff described as routine maintenance. The structure was built in 1987. He declined to estimate the cost of the exterior repair and maintenance work. Berkeley is not working on the interior of the building.

Berkeley Investments bought two buildings in Providence owned by Blue Cross & Blue Shield last year, paying $26.7 million for 15 La Salle Square, with 138,128 square feet, and One Empire Plaza at 417 Westminister St., with 99,648 square feet.

 Tags  Providence RI

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